To Love and be Loved
by Nightborn Dreamer
Summary: After a bad breakup, Naruto moves into a basement apartment with Sasuke Uchiha, a very distant man. Little did they know the affect they would have on each other and their lives.
1. Hidden

**To Love and be Loved**

Chapter 1: Hidden

Pairing: Eventual NarutoxSasuke, past NarutoxSakura

Rating: Right now it's like G, but it'll build up to M(A)

Summary: After a bad breakup, Naruto moves into a basement apartment with a Sasuke Uchiha, a very distant man. Little did they know the affect they would have on each other and their lives.

Author's Note: This is going to be my first NarutoxSasuke story that's long. I'm anticipating 20-30 chapters. I hope you guys will enjoy the ride! This story has been haunting my mind so I know I'll enjoy writing it. ^-^

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

**~*NS*~**

Naruto sat on the back of the, very empty, city bus, playing on his Smartphone. He answered a few questions from his friends about hanging out and how he was doing, trying to sound as normal as he possibly could even though he really wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone. After answering the last one, he looked out the window and, seeing he was as close as to where he needed to be, turned his phone off and pulled on the yellow string above the window to alert the driver to stop. The little beeping noise went off and he stood up, holding onto the seat in front of him to keep his balance.

He got off the bus and was greeted by a cool breeze. It was late spring and the leaves were back on the trees, flowers bloomed in people's gardens and there were even still lilacs still in bloom on some bushes. There weren't any stores anywhere he could see, simply houses that weren't too nice or too dirty. There weren't any people outside, probably due to the overcast. The sky was dark and grey and it looked like it would rain soon. Plus, it was still early and the kids were probably still in school and their parents were probably at work or enjoying a quiet house without them, and the ones without kids...well, who knows. It was 1:00pm on a Thursday; they could be at work or still sleeping for all he knew. Naruto loved laying in bed for hours after he woke up, then dragging himself out to make himself a bag of ramen for breakfast, something Sakura...

Pushing the thought away, Naruto turned focused on where he was going, keeping his mind pleasantly blank. After a few turns, he went into a dirt alley, following the direction he had scribbled down on a piece of paper, which he was holding up to look at. Apparently the apartment he was looking for wasn't really easy to find. He was in a neighborhood of nothing but houses and a lot of trees and bushes, nothing really stood out and all of the streets looked the same. It was almost like a maze. After passing about three houses, Naruto turned to see a man crouching outside waiting for him, his back against the house. He didn't have anything in hand and was simply staring blankly in front of him, expressionless. He had dark black hair and fair skin, but that was all Naruto took note of. He walked up to him and, upon hearing him, the man looked up.

"Sasuke Uchiha?" Naruto asked.

"Hn. You're late."

Naruto shrugged. "Well, the bus was late."

Sasuke stood up and grabbed the handle of the door on the side of the...well, it _looked_ like a fairly big house, but it was actually an apartment building. Sasuke didn't really say anything, simply opened the door and walked inside. Naruto followed him, down the stairs, remembering that the apartment Sasuke lived in was a basement one. At the bottom of the stairs, there was another door. This time a brown one (the one outside had been white), Sasuke unlocked it and said, "I already have a key for you, so if you want to move in today you can."

"You don't have to meet anyone else?"

Sasuke just shook his head and continued in. When he entered the apartment, there was a small hallway that lead into it. Sasuke took his shoes off and put them to the side, so Naruto did the same, not wanting to track dirt in. The floor for the hallway was wood, but at the end he saw a white tiled floor. At the end of the hallway, they turned to the left and into the kitchen.

"The bathroom is here." Sasuke opened a white door (that was on the left and to the left of the counter) to show the bathroom...that had another white door inside. "That leads into my room." Sasuke's eyes narrowed. "If you're to live here, you must _never_ open that door. Agreed?"

"Agreed," Naruto said easily enough, not knowing why he would even want to.

Sasuke closed the door and led Naruto out of the kitchen. The floor had light brown carpet and they weren't in a narrow space anymore. The hallway and the kitchen had been fairly narrow, now it stretched out to the left, there was another door on the left side and the right was more room, probably the living room. There was a brown door straight ahead and Sasuke opened it, saying that that would be Naruto's room. There was a little window at the top where he could see the dirt and grass from outside. He doubt it opened. The room was pretty decently sized, shaped like a box with another door to that right that was probably a closet.

Sasuke closed the door and walked closer to the right, but stopped and pointed to the brown door at the left wall. "That's my room." Then he pointed to the right where there was nothing but a sofa on the right, back against the wall, Naruto's room on the other side, and on the left was a mahogany table that Sasuke probably ate dinner at. There were some newspapers stacked on top of it too.

"No TV?"

"The TV belonged to my last roommate. He took it with him." Sasuke leaned against the table and crossed his arms. "So, do you want to move in or not?"

"Don't you have some questions to ask first?"

"Fine. Do you have a job?"

"Yeah."

"Can you pay rent and the bills? The electricity and water bills are separate. We don't have cable or internet, just so you know."

"If I get that though, would you help pay for it?" Naruto asked, already planning on getting it.

"We can split the bill evenly."

"That's fine with me." Naruto scratched the back of his head. "Yeah. I'll move in." He wasn't sure how to sound when saying that, if he was expected to sound excited or happy or grateful, but Sasuke didn't comment on his lack of enthusiasm and just dug into his jean pocket for Naruto's key, giving it to him.

"Don't give anyone else a copy of the key. I don't care if the other person is your girlfriend or boyfriend or best friend forever. Got it?" Sasuke narrowed his eyes, but Naruto was already shaking his head.

"Don't have to worry about that," Naruto mumbled, pocketing his key.

Without another word, Sasuke went into his room, closing the door. Naruto sighed. He really didn't have much of an opinion about his new roommate, only that he seemed rather distant and cold, but Naruto didn't have the energy to dwell on it. Maybe if he had met him a couple of weeks or months prior, he might have, but at the moment, he just wanted to move and get settled and not think about anyone else. With that thought in mind, he left the apartment to go pick up some things.

**~*NS*~**

"I'm back!" Naruto called as he entered a small one story house. He kept the white door behind him open, outside of the door was a backroom where the washer and drier were, as well as another door (and screen door) which led to the driveway. He went to the fridge, the carpet beneath his feet a lighter shade of blue green. Opening the fridge, he grabbed a can of Orange Crush pop. A man with long white, messy hair pulled back in a pony tail came in.

Naruto looked at the man's attire, a pair of grey sleeping pants and a red shirt.

"Damn Jiraiya, did you just get out of bed?" Naruto grinned.

"Don't judge brat. You know that if you didn't have to meet that guy today you'd still be in bed too. Besides, I'm a writer, this is our life. We sleep until noon and then write until we pass out." The man chuckled, shifting his weight on his left leg. "So how'd it go anyway? Did you get the apartment or do you gotta wait?"

"I got it. I was actually hoping you'd let me borrow your truck so I can start taking everything over here."

Jiraiya's eyebrows shot up. "What, you want to move now? What's the rush? And don't you have to work tonight?"

"I told you, I got today off. I work _tomorrow_ night. Is it common for writer's to have a bad sense of time too? Do you even know what month it is?" Naruto laughed softly at his own joke.

"I was just saying. You don't have to rush anything if you don't want to. You haven't even talked about your break up with Sa-"

"There's nothing to talk about. Look, I'm really grateful you let me crash on your couch for the past couple of weeks, but I need my own space. I want my own room again – even more than that, I want a _bed_ to sleep in." Naruto laughed, though it sounded empty and fake even to himself. "That couch is like, half my size. It'd be nice to wake up and not ache everywhere, yanno?" Naruto sighed and looked at Jiraiya, one of the two men that always seemed to take him in when he had nowhere else to go. "I just wanna get settled in as fast as possible. So...will you let me borrow your truck?"

Sighing himself, Jiraiya waved his hand. "Yeah, yeah. Just let me get the keys. And because I'm so nice, I'll even help you drag your shit out. Seriously, for a single guy, you have way too much crap."

Even though it was meant as an obvious joke, being referred to as a "single guy" stung a little, but it didn't look like Jiraiya noticed, and Naruto was glad for that.

Forcing a grin as he walked to where his stuff was, he shouted, "Thanks old man!"

While they were loading up the back of the truck, Jiraiya asked about his roommate.

"What do you wanna know about him? Not that I can answer, probably, since I don't know him myself."

"What's he look like?"

Naruto opened his mouth to answer, but when he thought back on it...he realized he really didn't remember. He had seen his roommate, had looked right at him, but his face was a blur already. He just hadn't been focused on him. He hadn't been focused on much except what he was saying, and even then, he was only paying attention to distract himself. Hearing him, but not really listening.

"He...has black hair," Naruto said, remembering that much. "And he was pale. I didn't really notice much else."

Jiraiya sighed and shook his head. "What have I told you about paying closer attention to your surroundings?"

"I thought that was only when there were pretty women around," Naruto grinned.

"Heh, true, true."

He asked more questions about his roommate, but other than his name, Naruto really didn't have anything to say about him. When the back of the truck was full, Naruto left, alone, trying to remember what his roommate's face looked like, but he just couldn't remember.


	2. Memories of the Past

**To Love and be Loved**

Chapter 2: Memories of the Past

Pairing: Eventual NarutoxSasuke, past NarutoxSakura

Rating: Right now it's like G, but it'll build up to M(A)

Warning: There is a lot of mention of past NaruSaku in this chapter.

Author's Note: After some thought, I've decided to write all of my responses to the reviews at the bottom. Also, this story will not contain Sakura bashing, as I rather adore the character. This chapter is all about learning a little more about Naruto pre-story (though certainly not everything). The next chapter will be in Sasuke's perspective (still third person).

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

**~*NS*~**

Naruto had just finished putting the sheets on his bed. Throwing his lone white pillow on it, he straightened and looked at the two boxes he had left to unpack as well as a trash bag full of clothes. He frowned as he realized he'd have to save up for a new dresser. He had gotten rid of his last dresser since he and Sakura were going to share one (a very large one) when they moved in together, but...well...that wasn't going to happen anymore. He had allowed Sakura to keep the dresser they bought together, even though she had said he could have it, and then he had walked out without a word. Maybe she hadn't kept it though. Maybe she pawned it off... He supposed he couldn't blame her if she did.

Rubbing his face with his hand, he decided to not think about that and moved toward his garbage bag of clothes. He couldn't very well remember if they were clean or not, so he sniffed in the bag and reached in to feel them and decided they were good to wear. Closing the bag back up, he moved on to one of his last boxes and froze when he saw a pink heart shaped sticker on it. He...didn't remember putting that there. Hesitantly, he opened the box and saw a note inside. Biting his lip, he took the note and stared at it. He really shouldn't open it. It was obviously from Sakura, his ex. They had broken up three weeks ago, but it was still on his mind. He scolded himself for it. He should already have moved on. According to some of his friends, he should have moved on after the second day and gotten laid. It wasn't that Naruto was pining, at least he didn't _feel_ like he was, but he had been loyal to this woman for years and...he hadn't been expecting the breakup. Sakura, apparently, had been thinking about it for awhile. He scolded himself for not noticing _that_ as well.

Falling down from his crouching position into a crossed legged position, Naruto opened up the note and saw little hearts scribbled everywhere. The note read: "_I can't wait to live with you! Love you!"_

He wondered what Sakura thought as she wrote that. Did she..._really_ love him? Did she like him? Did she...already have it in her mind that he wasn't the one for her? Where had it all gone wrong? Naruto...still wasn't sure how he really felt about it all. He was hurt and admittedly lonely but...he had also been relieved when she broke up with him. Why? He had wanted to be with her for so long. No one meant more to him than her. But...things hadn't been going well at the end. They had stopped being intimate with each other almost half a year ago, not including the little touches here and there. He couldn't remember the last time they had sex. Moving in together was...almost like a last attempt to make things okay, to move forward and convince themselves they were going to work everything out and end up together and that it was...right.

Naruto thought of the beginning of the relationship. Sakura had been his first real relationship. He had dated a couple of other girls in high school, but none of the relationships lasted long. He believed three weeks was his longest relationship before Sakura, whom he dated for four years. It had been...so very awkward at the beginning. Neither of them knew how to act around each other. Sakura had been his friend since he was in elementary school. He had started to crush on her in middle school, but had never thought it would happen, then suddenly she asked him out not long after his eighteenth birthday, on October 11th. He had felt a mix of things then too. It was always so confusing between them. He had wanted to be with her for so long, but when it happened it was just a confusing rollercoaster of emotion he just didn't understand. Was it the same for Sakura?

These were feelings he had never explained to anyone, including Sakura. He didn't want them. He had convinced himself it wouldn't last, that his feelings would change and he'd be nothing but happy to be with her. He would marry Sakura and live happily ever after. Wasn't that what Sakura always said? Sakura was always a sucker for love stories, and she always said everyone ended up with the person they were meant to be with – if they wanted to be with anyone – and live happily with that person. Naruto had just assumed Sakura was that person. Why _wouldn't_ she be? She was the most amazing person he had ever known. No one had captured his attention like she had.

Naruto hadn't realized his shoulders had sagged and that he was hunching and frowning. He supposed he should throw the note away. He crumpled it up in his hand, but when he looked in the box, he saw a lot of the things Sakura had given him. He remembered packing it all, but he must have left it open. Sakura must have stumbled upon it and taped it shut after putting her note inside.

Seeing everything in there, the presents from when they were dating and even before then, the love letters...it all hurt to see. He felt a strange emptiness in his heart and he also felt...lonely. It was stupid, and he told himself he had no reason to feel heartbroken when he had also felt relieved, but he _did_. He had lost a long relationship he had been so sure he wanted, and not only that, but he had also lost a friend. He hadn't spoken with Sakura since the breakup. He wasn't sure what to say to her, or how to talk to her anymore, which was...sad, because she had been the closest thing he had to a best friend and now she was seemingly gone and out of his life. He wasn't sure if she'd ever come back.

_I wish we'd never dated at all_, he thought sadly to himself. _If we hadn't, Sakura would probably be here helping me unpack right now._

Naruto threw the crumpled up piece of paper across the room. He knew he should throw the entire box of things away too, including the stuff she had given him as a friend. He grabbed it, intent on throwing it out, but couldn't move for some reason. Biting his lip, he instead went through the items, spending the next twenty minutes reading old letters, looking at old (bad) drawings he did and paintings she did (they had gone through an art phase), and little items Sakura had given him, such as an orange fox stuffed animal. She had given him that on his seventh birthday. So many years of love and friendship were in this box. As much as he knew giving the stuff away and throwing it out would help him move on, he just couldn't bring himself to part with a box full of memories and feelings that had brought him so much joy, even if it no longer did. So, instead of doing that, he went to his closet. He opened the brown wooden door and slid the box in with his foot, not stopping until it hit the back right corner, then closed the door.

Just before he reached the other box, his phone went off on his bed. Grabbing it and flopping down on it, he saw that he had a new text from his friend Shikamaru.

_Shikamaru: Hey, Chouji and I are going out to eat. You can come if you want._

Naruto tapped the side of his phone with his finger, thinking. He really didn't want to go out. He wasn't really in the mood to see or talk to anyone, especially since he'd feel he'd have to be his usual self, which was happy and talkative and hyper. It wasn't as if Naruto was the type of guy to dwell on things, he really wasn't, but couldn't he just want some alone time and not have all of his friends worry about him and frantically try and spend time with him. He swore he never got this many texts, calls, or invites to hang out when he and Sakura were together. It was almost as if his friends thought he needed to be constantly distracted and not allow him to sit down with nothing but his own thoughts for comfort. It wasn't as if he didn't appreciate the fact that they thought they were helping him, but sometimes even he wanted to be by himself.

In the end, he texted back that he would go and asked where to meet them. They offered to pick him up, but Naruto was reluctant to give away his address for some reason. His new home wasn't particularly easy to find, nor was his street. The neighborhood really was like a maze and it was easy to get lost in if you didn't know what turns to make. It was sort of...comforting. It was almost as if he was living in a secret location no one could find him. He would of course tell his friends where he lived eventually, but for the moment he wanted to take comfort in his secret hideaway.

After Shikamaru texted back where to go, Naruto looked up the bus schedule on his phone.

When he left his room, he didn't see his roommate, though he had heard him leave that morning, probably for work. When he had come back to his apartment yesterday to bring in his things from the truck, his roommate was in his room and didn't come out. He didn't offer to help him bring in his things or anything. Not that Naruto wanted or needed the help, but it was something _he'd_ do for someone moving in. Sasuke was...almost eerily quiet. It was a bit strange, but Naruto wasn't sure what to even say to him, so it was probably for the best.

**~*NS*~**

When he got to the restaurant, he met Shikamaru and Chouji inside. He was a little nervous since they were good friends with Ino, who Sakura was living with. For some reason, it was all he could think on the way there. He wondered if they'd bring them up, but that didn't really sound like them. Shikamaru hated anything even slightly dramatic and Chouji was probably just thinking about what he was going to have to eat.

"Hey guys," Naruto waved with a smile as he walked up to them.

Shikamaru raised his hand in greeting while Chouji greeted him more excitedly. The waitress led them to a table by the window and there was a view of their city's river outside of it.

"This is almost romantic," Naruto grinned.

"Please. You know I don't do romance," Shikamaru replied. It was true. Shikamaru was the least romantic person Naruto had ever met. It was no wonder he and Ino hadn't worked out. They had dated a little bit in high school, but then broke up due to them both wanting different things in life. Ino wanted romance, a very handsome man who could model if he wanted, and marriage and kids. Shikamaru...well, he didn't want any of that and while he wasn't unattractive, beautiful wasn't a word that would describe him very well either.

Of course, just as Sakura had told him, it all worked out for the best. Ino was still dating around until she could find her Mr. Right, and Shikamaru was in some type of relationship with a woman named Temari (who he had met through Naruto) who was just as unromantic as he was. She also didn't want to ever get married or have kids, so they were on the same boat with that as well. Due to this, they also didn't define their relationship, but they also didn't see anyone else.

"So how's your new apartment? Are you settled in yet?" Shikamaru asked.

"Yeah. Well, mostly. I gotta bring in my TV and get a new dresser. I only got one box left to unpack though."

"I would have offered to help you move, but...well..."

"Too troublesome?" Naruto joked, knowing how lazy his friend tended to be.

"I just really hate moving. I don't even wanna do that shit when I move."

"Oh trust me, I know. I'm sure Chouji and Temari _especially_ know."

"Temari won't help me move."

"He just makes me do it," Chouji complained. "Though he buys me pizza to make up for it."

"At least he keeps you nice and fed while you move his stuff for him," Naruto joked. Chouji continued to complain, since he could be just as lazy, but deep down they were...best friends. They had been best friends before Naruto had even met them, which he did in middle school when he was twelve. Watching them, Naruto was reminded of how he really didn't have a best friend. He had a lot of good friends, but no best friend. The closest, as he had thought earlier, had been Sakura. He supposed after her it was another boy who he had grown up with, but that didn't really seem right there. Naruto didn't have a lot of fun with that friend; he just felt that that person was the one who understood him the best. Not that he understood him perfectly, but it was the closest anyone had ever gotten. No one Naruto had met had ever really known and understood him completely, even Sakura. Actually, that had been a problem in their relationship – their lack of understanding each other.

"So are you going to tell us where you live?" Shikamaru pulled him out of his thoughts by asking.

"Huh? Oh. Uhh..." Naruto hesitated, not wanting to lie but not wanting anyone to know where he lived right away. Luckily the waitress came back to give them their drinks and take their order, so he didn't have to decide on what to do. After they ordered and she left, it wasn't brought up again.

"So...have you guys hung out with Ino lately?" Naruto brought up. He wasn't sure why he had asked. In fact, on the bus ride there he had promised himself he wouldn't bring up anything relating to Sakura, but apparently his mouth had other ideas.

"I hung out with her last week," Shikamaru answered.

"I couldn't go though. I had to work with my dad, so Ino kept sending me pictures of what they were doing to torture me."

"She hasn't seen you in awhile, that's why."

"Eh, all she does is nag me about my diet."

Shikamaru shrugged as he took a drink of his Coke. "She nags everyone. We haven't dated in over five years and she still nags me about how I dress and act."

"Now you have Temari to do that," Chouji pointed out with a bit of humor.

"Eh, she just nags me on how I act."

"It's cool how you guys are still friends though," Naruto smiled. "You and Ino, I mean. And Temari doesn't seem to care at all."

"She doesn't." Shikamaru gave Naruto a more serious look. "I'm sure you'll be friends again too one day. When you're both ready."

Naruto bit his lip, not sure what to say to that.

"How's your roommate? Is he a cool guy? Or a girl? You haven't told us anything," Chouji pointed out, changing the subject. He never did like tense discussions. Naruto didn't blame him.

"Ah, you know, you're the second person to ask and I still don't know what to say. I've only been there one night and I've only seen him when he gave me the key. He just kind of keeps to himself and stays in his room. I think he's at work now? Or, well, I heard him this morning when I was still in bed. He left to go somewhere and he didn't come back. I assume he's at work."

"So you don't know anything about this guy?" Chouji pressed. "That's a little weird. I mean...you like...love people right? You're always getting all up in everyone's business. I would have thought you'd have his whole life story by now."

"Heh, well, there's still time for that." Honestly though, Naruto was a little happy his roommate was so reserved. It gave Naruto time to be alone with his thoughts and, who knows, maybe his roommate needed to be alone with his too. The thought did spark a little curiosity in him though, and he began to wonder if that was really the case.

The conversation then went to how his friends' week went. They asked Naruto about his life as well, but he really didn't have much to say. After they ate, Naruto had to go to work, not rejecting their offer to give him a ride.

The whole time he just watched them, wondering what it was like to have someone, a best friend or a lover or both, who truly understood him.

**~*NS*~**

When Naruto got back to the apartment after his nightshift at about 11pm, he saw Sasuke in the kitchen grabbing a bottle of water.

"Hey, you're back."

"Hn. I got back at three."

Not long after Naruto left.

"Oh, did you go to work?"

Sasuke gave him a look, as if he was wondering why someone would ask him that.

"Yeah."

"Oh, I just got off work too," Naruto replied lamely.

"That's nice." And then Sasuke left, and Naruto heard his door open and shut and sighed. His roommate was really anti-social, it seemed. He wondered what kind of job he had and if he had to deal with people. For some reason, even though he didn't know him, the thought of Sasuke working with people with a smile on his face and pleasant attitude felt weird to him. He just couldn't see it.

When he got back to his room, he threw his shirt and pants off and fell into his bed in just his boxers, thinking about his roommate's appearance.

_Well, he's definitely a pretty boy_, he thought to himself, but he hadn't picked up on anything else, not even what he was wearing. Usually he really _was_ more observant of the people he met, but he just couldn't focus. He was tired too. All he knew about his roommate so far was that he was Asian, had dark hair, fair skin, and was a pretty boy.

Well, there was always more time to learn more about him. Maybe one day he'd even learn things other than surface appearances. Maybe...

With that thought in mind, he rolled on his stomach and went to sleep.

* * *

As mentioned above, I'll be answering any questions/comments and such down here. Also a collective thank you to everyone because you're all awesome and typing down your pen names helps me remember them XD! I used to do this for all of my original fiction on FP – I saw other writers doing it and it looked fun – and since I miss it I decided to start back up since this is a longer story. This is also useful in case some of you have questions, I can answer them here so all can see in case they have the same question. 3 Unless you'd rather I answer via PM, then just be sure to ask me in your review.

Thank you: **JuliaT-chan, Dragon77, Guest, Akira Nishikawa, , Haruka Uzumaki21, Nessie002**

**Akira Nishikawa: **Oh! You know...this is actually going to be a NaruSasuNaru...SasuNaruSasuNaruetc lol. I totally forgot to mention that anywhere, since I don't think about it. I wonder if I should though... But yeah, this will have NaruSasu in it...but it'll have SasuNaru as well. ^_^;; Should probably mention that somewhere...

**Nessie002: **Ah ha, it'll be a little angst-y, but I'm not sure it's going to be too much? Hmmm. I guess I'll let you guys be the judge of that. :3


	3. Comfort Noise

**To Love and be Loved**

Chapter 3: Comfort Noise

Pairing: Eventual NarutoxSasuke, past NarutoxSakura

Rating: Right now it's like G, but it'll build up to M(A)

Warning: Errr, Sasuke's not in a good place? That's all I can think of for this chapter.

Author's Note: And now we have Sasuke's chapter :D!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

**~*NS*~**

Exiting his room with a small yawn, Sasuke went over to the couch where he laid down. He covered his eyes with his arm and mentally went over what he had to do that day.

Honestly, all he really had to do was wait for the cable guy to come. Naruto had brought his TV Sunday, though he had apparently called about it on Friday. It was Thursday now, a week after Naruto moved in, and the cable guy was supposed to be there at around 2pm. Naruto would have waited himself, but he got called into work unexpectedly. To say Sasuke had been surprised (and greatly annoyed) when Naruto started pounding (that might have been a bit of an over exaggeration) on his bedroom door to wake him up at seven in the morning would be an understatement. Sasuke absolutely hated being woken up, so it took all of his willpower not to hurt his roommate in some way, but after listening to his quick explanation he decided not to hold it against him (he needed him to make rent and pay certain bills after all).

Sasuke didn't really have an opinion of his roommate. The other man seemed to keep to himself and that was just fine with Sasuke. There were times, though, like that second night, when he seemed to almost try and drag Sasuke into some mundane conversation about nothing, which Sasuke had zero interest in.

At least he was still a step up from his last roommate. _That_ guy was annoying as hell.

Sasuke rolled and curled up on his side. He hated being home...but he also hated work and there wasn't really anyone for him to spend time with, no one he _wanted_ anyway. The more the years passed, the more isolated Sasuke became, until he was living in his little basement apartment, cut off from everyone, even the man who took him in and _insisted_ they keep in contact. Sasuke would say he felt guilty for cutting him out of his life but...well, he didn't. He supposed that deep down he really was as much of a heartless asshole as everyone thought. His last roommate had constantly reminded him of how cold and distant he could be.

It wasn't so much that Sasuke was stoic and didn't feel. If that was a problem, then he would be able to live his life easier, he felt. More robotic. But no, he felt too much. That was the problem. And then there were days when he it was so intense that he'd become numb and just lay on his bed and stare at the ceiling for hours.

Sasuke looked up at the clock on the wall, above the table. It was broken and stuck on 6:47. He knew he still had a lot of time before 2pm rolled around though. Too much time. He should really ask his boss about more hours. He was working thirty hours a week now. He wouldn't mind working forty. After all, he didn't have to deal with people in this job like in his last. Sasuke had been a manager at his last job, but, well, he had to deal with so many idiots that he just couldn't handle it. Needless to say, he lost the job. It had been a blow to his ego, but honestly, if people weren't so stupid and knew how to do their own jobs, then he would have been fine.

Now he stacked things on shelves at a grocery store with a boss that was too dumb to function. Honestly, the woman had no idea how to schedule people. One day Sasuke was working mornings, the next he was working midnights (which he was doing that night. Joy.) It also wasn't a job he could be proud of, but it was a job. Besides, he had given up on the idea of getting a job he'd be proud of. He had no idea what he would go into, what he would do. What pleased him? He had no idea. He hadn't been pleased or had fun in a long time. Not since before...

That feeling in his chest was back. A tight squeezing around his heart. The pain of loss and the burden of carrying his guilt around were so overwhelming at times. He just wanted to set something on _fire_.

He rolled onto his other side, facing the back of the couch. He absolutely hated his life. Sometimes he wondered why he even bothered, but at least no one else was bothering with him anymore.

The therapists he was required to see growing up by court order had done nothing for him. The man that took Sasuke in, no matter how hard he tried, really couldn't do anything for him. He remembered that man, Kakashi Hatake, and how he used to always tell Sasuke to let go of the past and find something to live for in the present and future. To allow himself to dream.

Sasuke...really didn't have any dreams. He was nothing. What was the point of dreaming anyway? They were just fantasies, nothing more. Who actually fulfilled their dreams? Sasuke knew Kakashi hadn't, nor had Kakashi picked up any new dreams, so who was he to lecture anyway?

Sasuke was glad he cut him off. If he hadn't, he'd probably be popping in just to lecture him some more.

Closing his eyes, Sasuke tried to quiet his mind so he could sleep a little, but now he was too annoyed and his heart ached too much to sleep, so he just laid there on the couch, thinking about the world and the people in it and how he didn't like any of it. He continued to do this until it neared 2pm. Mentally sighing, he dragged himself from the cough and went outside to wait.

**~*NS*~**

When Naruto came back later that night, Sasuke was tempted to turn the volume up. He was lying on the couch watching TV, which stood against the right wall of the room, right across from Sasuke's bedroom door and bed. Maybe if Naruto got too talkative Sasuke could just go into his room, keep the door open, and watch the TV from his bed.

"Hey, the cable guy came!" Naruto shouted excitedly.

_Gee, what gave it away?_

"Thanks for agreeing to this. I wouldn't be able to afford to get this by myself," Naruto laughed sheepishly, as if embarrassed. Sasuke didn't know _why_. It wasn't as if he had any more money than Naruto did.

"I didn't do it as a favor for you," Sasuke stated.

"Ah, well yeah. I'm sure you're going to enjoy watching your shows and playing on the internet."

Sasuke didn't answer that. He really didn't use the internet much. He used it to get word out that he was looking for a roommate, but that was it, and he used his last roommate's laptop for that before he moved out. His phone was really his only means of communication and he only used that for work.

As for the TV...well, Sasuke just really liked noise. It drowned out his thoughts and made it easier for him to sleep. Without noise, he had a hard time sleeping. His thoughts would keep him awake.

"Is there anything specific you wanna watch?" Naruto asked as he sat down on the floor, the couch completely taken by Sasuke, though his roommate didn't complain. If Sasuke were a good person, he might have thrown one of the pillows on the floor for Naruto to sit on, but he never claimed to be a good person.

"No." Sasuke tossed the remote on the floor, next to Naruto's right leg. "Knock yourself out." Then Sasuke closed his eyes as Naruto flipped through the channels.

"Ah, there's a horror movie on! Hmm, I'm always on and off about those yanno? On one hand they can be nice to watch at night, especially around Halloween, but on another I don't really wanna watch a bunch of people get killed."

Again, Sasuke remained quiet. He had no strong opinions on horror movies. He really didn't have an opinion on _most_ genres. He just hated comedy and movies that were too mushy and fake, like romance. Romantic comedies he absolutely despised.

"I _really_ love action movies! And comedies!"

Sasuke mentally groaned.

"I don't like comedies," he said, hoping Naruto got the hint and didn't settle on a comedy movie or channel.

"Eh? Why not? Who doesn't like comedies?!"

"I don't. What's to like? It's just a bunch of people acting stupid."

"Well...yeah...that's why it's funny..."

"It's stupid."

"Fine. What kind of movies do you like then? Ah, let me guess, you like the romantic vampire movies like Twilight, right?" Naruto grinned at him.

"No, you moron, I don't like fucking romance movies."

"Okay, fine. What about action? Are those okay for you?"

Sasuke didn't say anything. He actually...didn't _mind_ action movies, but for some reason he didn't want to say he liked them, especially when he knew they were some of Naruto's favorites. He was _not_ looking to bond with this man.

"I'll take your lack of a snippy response as a yes."

And just like that, a superhero movie was settled on. It had already started, but Naruto didn't seem to mind. He seemed so engrossed and Sasuke took a moment to take in his features.

His roommate's blond hair was a mess, but it seemed to be on purpose. He dressed plainly, like he had no fashion sense. He wore a simple black t-shirt with an orange swirl in the center and plain blue jeans. Apparently the place he worked didn't require him to wear a uniform. His skin was a bit tan, definitely darker than Sasuke's, and he had three lines on each cheek.

He wasn't terrible looking, Sasuke supposed, but certainly nothing to write home about either.

Throughout the movie, Naruto made random comments, but Sasuke didn't listen. It was just more noise. It wasn't bad though, and Sasuke found himself being lulled to sleep by all the noise.

* * *

And now Sasuke's chapter is over. I was going to show more of his past in this chapter, but it seemed too soon. Next chapter will have more of them interacting, so that should be fun. ^^

Thanks for the reviews: **nini, Akira Nishikawa, Dragon77, Nessie002, Guest (1), Guest (2)**

**nini: **Awww new reader! Haha, the most romantic story? Well, I'll definitely try to make it as romantic as I can :D!

**Nessie002:** Yes, I want to use more characters than what I use in most of my other stories. I actually used to write for the other Naruto characters quite a bit back in the day, but just became more NarutoxSasuke centered over the years lol. It'll be fun to add in other characters though and write for them, and hopefully it'll be fun to read too ^^! I think Sasuke and Naruto both need understanding about equally in this story, but yes, Naruto will probably be the type who initiates affection.

**Guest (1):** I'm happy to be writing this new story too! I've been stuck with the old for too long!

**Guest (2):** Lol. Of course Sasuke's gotta be a little anti-social. XD Otherwise he wouldn't be Sasuke. Well, unless you're playing with how he'd be if he never lost his family. Hehehe. X3


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